Mesa County, CO Noise from Specific Sources: Delivery Truck Noise (2026)
Key Facts
- Governing section
- LDC § 8.05.A(5)
- Restricted hours
- 10:00 p.m. to 7:00 a.m.
- Noise threshold
- 45 decibels at the adjoining lot line
- Exception
- Documented sound barriers meeting the 45 dB limit
- Applies to
- Nonresidential and multi-family commercial sites
Summary
Mesa County bans nighttime delivery, loading and trash-removal noise at commercial and multi-family sites unless the operator proves it is quiet enough. Section 8.05.A.5 of the Land Development Code prohibits delivery, loading, trash removal or compaction operations between 10:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m., unless sound barriers cut noise to 45 decibels or less at the adjoining property line.
5. No delivery, loading, trash removal or compaction, or other such operations shall be permitted between the hours of 10:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. unless the applicant submits evidence that sound barriers between all areas for such operations effectively reduce noise emissions to a level of forty-five (45) db, as measured at the lot line of any adjoining property.
Full Breakdown
05, 'Outdoor Storage, Trash Collection and Loading Areas,' applies to every Nonresidential and Multi-Family Residential zoning district in unincorporated Mesa County. , closing off the overnight hours when noise complaints are most likely. The prohibition has one way around it: the applicant must submit evidence that sound barriers placed between the operating areas and neighboring property effectively reduce noise emissions to 45 decibels or less, measured at the lot line of any adjoining property. That is a measured, numeric standard, not a design-review judgment call, so a business seeking nighttime deliveries has to document the sound-barrier performance to Community Development rather than simply asserting it is quiet.
The rule reaches every noisy overnight activity tied to a commercial or multi-family site's back-of-house operations, truck deliveries, dumpster loading and compaction, and other such operations, not just trash pickup. 6. 05 entirely.
Violations & Fines
Code Compliance Services investigates nighttime-noise complaints against commercial and multi-family sites operating between 10:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m. without documented sound barriers meeting the 45-decibel standard. A site found in violation can be ordered to stop overnight operations, install qualifying sound barriers and submit noise evidence to Community Development, or face further code-enforcement action for continued noncompliance.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a business receive deliveries after 10 p.m. in unincorporated Mesa County?
What decibel limit applies to nighttime trash pickup in Mesa County?
Does the overnight noise rule apply to single-family homes in Mesa County?
Sources & Official References
Other rules in Mesa County
Compare Mesa County to another location·View the Colorado noise from specific sources overview
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